From Mehboob to Dior

Come to think of it, most of our communication with Kangana Ranaut has taken place between Europe and Mumbai! There was a time when chancing upon a store named Queen in Rome, we had sent her a picture, then the time when she had RSVP-ed from London that she was flying in the morning of our party and would be there (and she was).

Kangana Ranaut

So when we received this text from the actress a day after her debut as designer at a fashion show at Mehboob studios, we were not surprised. “Hi M, I’m in Paris at Dior headquarters trying out couture dresses for tomorrow’s show,” she said, adding a smiley. “My collection launch is one of the highest points in my career; this could be a baby step to something significant.” Ranaut on the international runway? Watch this space.

Equal opportunity intolerance“On Monday, 7 days before the premiere show of Agnes of God, the Sophia Bhabha Trustees and nuns banned the show, cancelled the premiere and all future shows through next year,” said Kaizaad Kotwal of Poor Box Productions, which he runs with his mother, Mahabanoo Mody Kotwal.

A scene from Agnes of God

The director is no stranger to controversy. “They gave no answer as to why,” he said. “Then later that evening it surfaced that they had, together with John Dias (of the Christian Secular Forum), decided to ban the play and stop all future performances.

Dias also threatened us with arrest and imprisonment and bodily harm. When we managed to reschedule the show for Monday, October 5 at NCPA’s TATA Theatre, he promised to shut down all shows and have us imprisoned,” said Kotwal.

“This despite (1) the play having cleared the Censor Board of Maharashtra, (2) It being based on a true story and having been performed in Mumbai 25 or so years ago at venues like Sophia.” What can we say, except that intolerance and bigotry are equal opportunity offenders. Meanwhile, we’ve confirmed our attendance for Monday’s show.

Castle sleepover?Never thought we’d have the dubious pleasure of saying ‘been there done that’ to none less than the high flying and jet setting Suhel Seth, but when we read the peripatetic bon vivant’s boast about being a guest of HRH Prince Charles at his Balmoral Castle in Scotland recently, we could do just that.

Balmoral Castle

‘Spent a glorious morning with Prince Charles as his guest at Birkhall at Balmoral here in Scotland discussing philanthropy and the way forward for the Prince’s charities...he is a gracious host and a wonderful humanist...’ Seth had posted on Facebook.

Prince Charles and Suhel Seth

Well, way before the advent of social media and cell phone selfies, we too had been guests of the Prince at the very same castle, as part of a media group; and whereas our conversation had lasted no more than a few minutes of intense and studied PC (the Brit Royals are schooled in the art) over high tea in one of the castle’s impressive public rooms, we were not given the royal tour of the grounds as Seth was.

But here’s the moot question. Did Seth get to rest his head on a royal pillow on a sleepover at Balmoral? After our tete-a-tete with HRH and Camilla, we were transported back to our hotel. We must remember to ask Seth when we can sit him down in one continent, if he’d been invited as royal guest in the truest sense. Seeing HRH in his jammies — now that would be something to boast about!

Boy in the bubbleNo surprises that his Instagram handle was ‘champagneboy’ and now word comes in that even as Moet Hennessey’s Gaurav Bhatia moves out of the French luxury conglomerate, he will be retaining the nomenclature, as he steps out to do business on his own.

Gaurav Bhatia

“Finally out of my bubble and yet not,” said Bhatia when we enquired about his move. “My new startup is called Champagne Boy,” he said. Meanwhile, more changes appear to be on the cards for Moet Hennessey India, as word comes in that big boss Bruno Yvonne might soon be taking charge of another region. Pop goes that bubble.

Colour me pinkWe like our doctors flamboyant. And topping the colourful men of medicine, is none other than SoBo’s orthopedist surgeon, Dr Chetan Unadkat, whose love for all things orange saw him embrace the colour in all its variety and hues.

Dr Chetan Unadkat. Pic/Facebook

From his orange Mitsubishi Lancer to his orange pants and shirts, and his watchstrap and spectacle frames. Well, now things must be coming up roses for the good doctor, because last seen he was zooming around town in a pink custom built Jaguar, his celebrated goatee in tact.

While we don’t really know what accounted for this colour variation, all we can say is that we wish the colourful maverick many years in the pink of health.